Funeral procession for Chris Kyle through Salado

More than 100 local residents gathered at the FM 2484 overpass of I-35 to show their support for funeral procession for Chris Kyle passed through Salado at 11 a.m. today.

Thousands have gathered along the procession from Dallas to the State Cemetery in Austin as a way to honor the Navy SEAL.

An escort including the Department of Public Safety and Patriot Guards, along with various local law enforcement representatives and others, will accompanied the body of Navy Seal Chris Kyle as it is transported for burial at the Texas State Cemetery in Austin on Tuesday morning.

Preceding the procession itself were two black-and-white DPS cruisers with lights flashing, the first, five minutes ahead of the procession and the second, one minute ahead, to alert traffic and bystanders of its approach. On-ramps will be closed approximately three minutes before the arrival of the main procession and re-opened when the procession has passed and traffic has cleared enough to allow safe access.

The main procession consisted of seven DPS black-and-white cruisers, approximately 200 Patriot Guards plus additional law enforcement motorcycles, the hearse carrying Kyle, 7-8 charter buses carrying family and friends, and 20-30 additional passenger vehicles, with two more black-and-white DPS cruisers with lights flashing at the end. Additional law enforcement and fire department vehicles may join the procession after the final two DPS cruisers along the way. A DPS helicopter is also expected to accompany the procession. (Original reports suggested that up to 200-300 passenger vehicles would take part, but the use of the charter buses has reduced that number significantly.)